Audrey | Arthritis Information

I know it's time to start the promotion part of your scheme but, this is our arthritis forum. If you want to advertise here, do it legally, got it?

Being a spammer is pathetic but being a spammer scammer is disgraceful, shame on you.

LEV

Audrey,

You are with-out a doubt one of the nastiest spammers to ever smell up our forum. Hopefully you and your husband will end up in jail.

LEV

Here is a part of Anaudlife's scheme:

Planning Our Subscriber Traffic Strategy - Part 3 of An Aud Life Dot Com

Posted on August 9th, 2008 by John Cow under Strategic Planning, Subscribers, Traffic Tips

For example, it is easy to say “Subscribers” but do I really have a solid understanding of what this means and a plan as to how to gain subscribers?

The four sources of traffic that we mentioned in the previous post that we are focusing on to achieve our “traffic goals” are…

1 - Subscribers (repeat visitors)
2 - Search Engines (Mainly Google)
3 - Forums & Social Networks
4 - Word of Mouth / Recommendations

Today we are going to start with…

Subscribers (repeat visitors):

Having subscribers is wonderful for repeat traffic, plus you have an asset of readers that you know are targeted to the market of your blog. It is the same as repeat customers, if you ask any profitable company they will tell you that it is much less expensive to sell to a current satisfied customer then it is to a new customer that has never heard of you.

The funny thing about subscribers is the message of “you need a list” is always being preached and yet one of the first things I notice on any new blog or website that I am asked to review is they have either a very weak incentive for people to subscribe or there is nothing at all.

I am a huge believer that if you want to grow your company for the long term, you NEED to create a list of subscribers. This has been a major influence in the growth of my entire business but the challenge that most people have is they think that if they simply put the little rss icon on their site or say “subscribe to my blog” they will build a huge profitable list of subscribers… BUT this simply does not work effectively for the average blog.

Here is how I look at it, there are currently 6 “make money online” blogs that I subscribe to. I have no reason to want to subscribe to any other blogs, especially just for the the sake of doing so because they say so. I might (if i remember) come back and visit other blogs, but unless it gives me a special reason (benefit) for why I should subscribe, well it just is not going to happen. I already have enough information coming my way.

You need to clearly understand that just because a subscription to your blog is free, that is not a compelling enough reason for people to want to make a commitment to your blog by subscribing. You need to create a USP (Unique Selling Position) that sets your offer apart from what everyone else is offering. Give Them a Reason!!!

“But would they not subscribe because of good content like at problogger?”

Yes but lets look at that example:

Problogger.net does not offer an incentive to readers to sign up and has a huge list but it is one of the original make money online industry blogs, it is highly referred to by other high authority sites, it is mentioned in books and loads of other places PLUS it has lots of history of reliable good content.

Now ask your self the question –> Does your new blog fit that mold?

Chances are it does not and the bottom line comes down to this, it has been proven over and over and over again that if you want to dramatically increase your subscriber rate, make an enticing offer with a high perceived value. The high perceived value means that the reward for subscribing outweighs any potential negatives.

OK, so hopefully I have drilled into your heads the power of not only a list but that you need to offer a good enticing offer that encourages readers to subscribe, so now we need to lay out how we plan to do this with http://www.anaudlife.com

1. The first thing is to decide on how we are going to manage subscribers. Our preference is using a combination of Feedburner with Aweber as they work extremely well together tracking your email subscribers together with your direct RSS subscribers. The power of this is with Aweber you can also email your list private offerings and send them occaissional free gifts that encourage them to stick around. You are creating an asset that you own and can use over and over again.
” and the number one symptom is “PAIN”, so we want to make sure we offer something of value that directly benefits them in this area. For this blog we decided on putting together a free ebook called “Leaving Arthritis Pain Behind”. Make sure if you are going to do this that you put together something of value and create a professional looking ebook cover.
3. Another powerful incentive that works very well for us, is contests. This has been very effective at growing our lists but you must do it right. You want to first of all make sure you offer prizes that relate to the interests of your readers. The great thing about contests, is they can not only boost your subscribers but if done right, can get you loads of backlinks and recommendations, which very effectively help with search engine and word of mouth traffic.

Summary: We are going to user Feedburner and Aweber, we are offering a valuable ebook and the last part of our initial traffic plan for “Subscribers” is we are going to create a contest.

In the next couple posts I am going to cover the “contest planning” and I am also going to get into more detail of setting up your opt in system. After that we will move on to the traffic plans for “Search Engines (Mainly Google)”, then “Forums & Social Networks” and then “Word of Mouth / Recommendations”

NOTE: I feel the need to throw this in –> If you are not going to offer an ebook or report or anything like that but just the subscription, you still want to make sure you say more then “Subscribe now” or “sign up for our newsletter”. It is so vitally important that you remember to always ask your self “what are the biggest benefits of doing this for my readers”. I will get into this in more detail in the next few lessons.

So what are your thoughts on this post?

Wow, Lev, I have to say this does freak me out a bit. I spent some time looking at the links and it looks pretty disturbing. I look forward to hearing Audrey's response.

I have to ask, how did you discover this?

Yes, an explanation ( or something) is definitely needed!

Edited to add: I have gone and read Audreys blog and I do believe she has RA and had no hidden agenda. So, I apologise for jumping to conclusions on Levs word, ( I am learning!!)and after reading all he chose to post.

Lyn

LyndeeNZ2008-08-10 00:43:30This is perplexing....And you Lev are just plain Nasty, Full stop.

[QUOTE=levlarry]I know it's time to start the promotion part of your scheme but, this is our arthritis forum. If you want to advertise here, do it legally, got it? Dear Levlarry,

Do you even know what a spammer scammer is?

Those are extremely offensive accusations and you are totally out of line.

I suffer from Rheumatoid Arthritis and thoroughly enjoyed and found great help through this forum. I have never once posted anything but my heartfelt truth and your accusations are hurtful and insulting. Show me where I have once spammed (spamming means someone who posts unrelated and unwanted material) or scammed (scamming means to lie or mislead anyone). This forum allows a signature with a link and all I have put is my blog site. I've never mentioned my blog once in a post. Nor do I ever plan to do so.

Yes, my husband is teaching me how to build my blog and promote it. He is very successful at what he does and has never spammed or scammed anyone. He is simply teaching people how to ethically build a blog online.

I have struggled with this disease for years, and I'm very passionate about it; this forum has shown me that I'm not alone. I joined in order to find out how others deal with RA for my own purpose and to share with others things I've experienced and discovered.

I am sitting here,on the verge of tears, totally dumbfounded, wondering why you are saying such hurtful remarks.

If I have ever given you reason in any of my posts or interactions to justify your outlandish remarks I would somewhat understand but I have never done such a thing.

You levlarry, are a very mean person who does not even know me nor do you have any justification to backup anything you have said. anaudlife2008-08-09 19:30:18But why does your husband's website say:

Step 2: How are we going to get Traffic from those sources?

Those above 4 steps might seem really basic to you and the reason is “They Are”. Those are essentially all that we are going to focus on and if I did not really want to give you good information I could stop here but the fact is you need to go much deeper and drill down into each specific section to the “HOW”.

It is easy to say I am going to get traffic from subscribers, but if I truly do not understand or plan out how I am going to achieve that, then I may as well say I am going to pull them out of my butt.

So how do you figure out the “HOW”?

You need to clearly understand two things…

1. Who is your audience?
2. What resources do you have available?
For http://www.anaudlife.com, the target audience are people who are suffering with Rheumatoid Arthritis Symptoms or have a loved one who is suffering with it and are looking for help, answers and someone they can relate to. Audrey is not targeting “customers” at all right now and instead is looking to build relationships with her readers.

NOTE: This is an important point and I am not saying you can not monetize your blog right away but you need to be careful and not be in such a rush to make a quick buck. Often we want to start earning revenue so badly that we become “in your face” with our marketing message and completely forget about building a relationship with the reader. Now on the other end of this, their comes a time when you need to try to earn some money and do not be afraid to do it. You may have some of your readers send you hate mail but remember, you have mouths to feed and you are in this to generate revenue.

One of the strong points to the arthritis niche, and I do not want to sound bad here, is that there is no cure for this condition. Of course we pray for a cure everyday but right now there is not one and because of this, it is not a market that people do not come and go out of. Once you have arthritis, you have it for life. (Man that sounds bad to say, please do not take it that way). The point here is it can be tough to build a subscriber base if the niche is one time purchases (say a mattress or GPS device), it is not impossible but a lot harder.

Lucy, you got some 'splainin to do!
Hillhoney2008-08-09 20:07:56Audrey, I do not know what made Larry say what he said. I've been around the block in the business world a time or two. I've known scammers (never fallen for any, through blind luck sometimes...) and I am pretty sure I know what a spammer is.... I've never received any spam from you. I followed your link, (I am a curious person. Heh...) and I saw no reason to feel like you were trying to scam me. If I wanted to, I could have signed up. I didn't. My choice. No coercion or lies that I could see. Of course, you want to try to raise your circulation. All business want that. You have a plan? Hats off to you, most people don't. You're getting advice from a professional (your husband)? Again, hats off, most people don't... My convoluted point? Until I see evidence to the contrary, you're ok by me...

As for letting Larry upset you. Don't. You don't base your self-worth on other people's opinions. That's self-defeating.... When I used to coach, I'd tell my ladies that the world is full of jerks, if you get upset everytime they do something to offend you, you'll spend a lot of time being upset and you'll get nothing out of it... If he followed your link and didn't like what he found, perhaps he shouldn't have followed...

Take care.

I'm sorry, I was going to comment earlier but got distracted.

I really don't see what the problem is here. She's got a blog out side of AI and wants to earn a living at it.

I have never seen her spam or scam anybody here nor promote her own site. This so reminds me of Lev's attack on the woman who did jewelry. So what, she was sharing, not selling. And where is she now?

I think this idiot runs people off with this crap all the time and we just keep letting it happen.

Pip

Hillhoney, please explain to me what that has to do with this forum whatsoever?

Does that give any justification to anything levlarry said?

Have I lied to anyone, spammed anyone or done anything in this forum to give any sort of justification to the accusations.

If you read the material you quoted, it means I am building relationships with people on my blog not with this forum. This forum has nothing to do with my blog.
anaudlife2008-08-09 20:15:50

Pip, this feels different to me, IMHO. It feels as those she came here to befriend folks, with a hidden purpose, to target people of a special group. Like the postings she has made so far are part of the initial setup, before she "monetize" her blog. And isn't it handy that her targeted audience won't get well, so they will keep coming back for more!

[QUOTE=Pip!]I'm sorry, I was going to comment earlier but got distracted. [QUOTE=Hillhoney]

[/QUOTE]

But even if she is a rampant spammer... does she still have RA? We have folks here (such as me) who make our money from Big Pharma; should I go, too?
Do you come here to promote the drugs from the company you work for? Have you targeted us?

I've seen a couple of links of people of their sites where they sell stuff. what's the difference?

[QUOTE=José]

I've seen a couple of links of people of their sites where they sell stuff. what's the difference?

Oh and BTW - I do not work for The Coca-Cola Company or Samuel Adams Brewery (though I highly recommend their products!).Ok, IF she was pimping her site, I'd say you have a point. However, she has not. If you work for a brewery, please feel free to "target" me with any kind of coupon....Heh.... [QUOTE=Hillhoney]

[/QUOTE]

Hillhoney what point are you not getting here. I suffer with Rheumatoid Arthritis and if you read the entire post you are referencing my husband mentioned that he asked me "What topic am I passionate about"

I am passionate about this topic because I suffer with the disease.

I asked my husband 2 months ago about building a blog, we decided on Arthritis, so i now have an arthritis blog. Please explain how this or my husbands blog have absolutely anything to do with this forum. You can't because they do not.

It feels different to you, well there is nothing I can do about that. I have merely posted when I have felt compassion and empathy.

BTW- I do not work for a drug company.
I am a stay at home mom who just wanted to start a blog.

I will continue to visit this forum, post in this forum and interact in this forum because other then this absolutely insulting accusation, I adore this forum and the friendships it has created.

anaudlife2008-08-09 20:38:10 [QUOTE=José]If you work for a brewery, please feel free to "target" me with any kind of coupon....Heh....[/QUOTE]

LOL

Perhaps we should all grab a cold one and chill a bit. [QUOTE=José]If you work for a brewery, please feel free to "target" me with any kind of coupon....Heh....[/QUOTE]

If I worked at a brewery- I'd be working over time right now in the taste testing!
Drinks on the House!
I brewed beer and mead in college. We also made whiskey once, but it was positively nasty. Way ahead of you, Jas...heh...Knock yourself out Audrey! [QUOTE=José]Way ahead of you, Jas...heh...[/QUOTE]

My research group at Big Pharma used to make wine together too. It was pretty good stuff, and we had a great time. One of my colleagues had his great grandfather's wooden wine press - brought here all the way from Italy!

Then we all grew up and had families, and didn't have time any longer for such trivial pursuits.
Wait a sec... how did I become a Groupie?... I wasn't thrilled with "Newbie" (I'm too old), but Groupie? Makes me feel schoolgirlish... Heh... [QUOTE=José]Wait a sec... how did I become a Groupie?... I wasn't thrilled with "Newbie" (I'm too old), but Groupie? Makes me feel schoolgirlish... Heh... [/QUOTE]

That plaid schoolgirl skirt looks good on you! Audrey, Tell Lev to belt it up his clacker..

Nothing more than a trouble maker.

I have a link to my site of images as well.
In that site I have for sale a DVD of some work that I have done.
There you go LEV, the doors open for you to come in and play.
BODAK has something for sale, shame on him, what a spammer, blah blah.
This Bodak guy must be one of the lowest lifes on earth....

No wonder some decent people drift away with trouble makers like Lev.

Bodak2008-08-09 20:49:15

Guys -

Look who started this mess - same person who always senselessly attacks somebody for bizarre reasons. I think last up was Joy. Jose, you're probably next. OK, on to important stuff - how do you make mead. I thought they didn't really know how to do that anymore.

And Jas, was it you that said something else worked besides that 0223 to get the squiggle over the O in Jose's name? That 223 doesn't work for me.

Pip

[QUOTE=Bodak] Audrey, Tell Lev to belt it up his clacker..

Nothing more than a trouble maker.

I have a link to my site of images as well.
In that site I have for sale a DVD of some work that I have done.
There you go LEV, the doors open for you to come in and play.
BODAK has something for sale, shame on him, what a spammer, blah blah.
This Bodak guys must be one of the lowest lifes on earth....

No wonder some decent people drift away with trouble makers like Lev.

[/QUOTE]

Bodak, you evil spammer!!! [QUOTE=Pip!]

Guys -

It is way to easier to buy a Corona. Heh...Bodak, I love your photos and have no problem with that kind of thing.

Anyone who knows me, knows Levlarry and I are not exactly chums! And it creeps me out that he found this info - I do wonder why he was checking up on Audrey.

But I do feel this feels a bit different. I don't think you came here, Bodak, to "build relationships" to sell your DVD.

NOTE: This is an important point and I am not saying you can not monetize your blog right away but you need to be careful and not be in such a rush to make a quick buck. Often we want to start earning revenue so badly that we become “in your face” with our marketing message and completely forget about building a relationship with the reader. Now on the other end of this, their comes a time when you need to try to earn some money and do not be afraid to do it. You may have some of your readers send you hate mail but remember, you have mouths to feed and you are in this to generate revenue.

[QUOTE=José]It is way to easier to buy a Corona. Heh...[/QUOTE]

Yes, but I need to justify that degree in chemistry that cost tens of thousands of dollars and 7 years of my life [QUOTE=Hillhoney]Bodak, I love your photos and have no problem with that kind of thing.

[QUOTE=SnowOwl]With apologies to all beer lovers here, I think beer looks, smells and tastes like something what shouldn't be put back into the human body.

Nope - not working. Am I supposed to keep alt held down the entire time? Is there a setting I should have set on the computer - and if so, where?

Pip

[QUOTE=Pip!]

Jose Jose

Nope - not working. Am I supposed to keep alt held down the entire time? Is there a setting I should have set on the computer - and if so, where?

Pip

[/QUOTE]

yep - hold it down while typing 130 on the numeric keypad (not the numbers above the letters)
Joseé

José Josß

Cool - when I do 0223 I get that second thing. Is there a way of seeing what all of the choices are?

Pip

Oh God, Chemistry... of all the sciences, my Nemesis.. Especially Organic Chemistry.... Yikes... I am impressed, though... Heh...

I will be letting you all know what I am selling soon... Have to make more friendships first... Wait, did I "say" that "out loud"?... Heh...

And thanks! [QUOTE=JasmineRain] [QUOTE=SnowOwl]With apologies to all beer lovers here, I think beer looks, smells and tastes like something what shouldn't be put back into the human body. I'm for back to discussing José in that Catholic Reform School skirt. It's the new fashion.

Pip

Pip,

that reminds me of a joke... Why can't Mexicans be Firemen?..... They can't tell the difference between Hose A and Hose B... I spent my entire soccer season my Froshman year in college being called Hose B by all my teammates, especially the upper classmen. They thought it was funny...

And Yes, I look hot in a schoolgirl skirt.... I'm just not down with cold drafts...Thank you Audrey.
And I have been to yours as well and found it to be useful info that you have on offer.
Lev must check on everybody just to see if he can dig some dirt up..

Quite easy to google your username and end up at the site but one only does that if they are looking for dirt.
[QUOTE=Pip!]

José Josß

[QUOTE=José]Pip, My avatar is a shout out to my oldest daughter who is nuts about all things Japanese. Including boys, to my everlastibng distress... Not because they are Japanese. But I am not ready for my daughter to like boys. I could have waited until she was 21 or so... Heh...

BTW it is the Kanjii symbol for Love.

[QUOTE=JasmineRain] [QUOTE=Pip!]

José Josß

▌hello ▐
▌world ▐
▌▄▄▄▄▄▄▐

Just trying out the extended ascii set
[QUOTE=José]My avatar is a shout out to my oldest daughter who is nuts about all things Japanese. Including boys, to my everlastibng distress... Not because they are Japanese. But I am not ready for my daughter to like boys. I could have waited until she was 21 or so... Heh... [QUOTE=anaudlife] [QUOTE=JasmineRain] [QUOTE=SnowOwl]With apologies to all beer lovers here, I think beer looks, smells and tastes like something what shouldn't be put back into the human body. [QUOTE=SnowOwl] Oooh - I want to try that Aud!

Thanks Jas!

José - my daughter repeats back to us she's not allowed to date until she's 40 - LOL

Have you guys seen the new 'back to school' Sears ads? It really is Catholic Reform School look from the 80's all over again!

Pip

Well... usually LevLarry is right on top of the spammer scammers, and most times right in doing so. But I went and checked out what all he posted and all and still did not feel like she was a "troll". I have read her posts, and they were all heartfelt and caring and all that good stuff.

So... I guess this one time LevLarry was wrong. But you old members know how he gets with URL's to "profit" making websites.

Do not let what Levlarry has said in his posts to hurt your feelings, Audrey. You know why you are here and you know the truth of it all. I am sure none of us, except Levlarry, sees you as a spammer scammer, but a fellow RA'er with her own battle.

Much hugs to you, and hope you are feeling a little better and not taking what levlarry said to heart anymore.

[QUOTE=joonie]

So... I guess this one time LevLarry was wrong. .

[/QUOTE]

One time?

<blink>

Pip

I have edited my post on the first page of this thread to reflect how I now see things.

Audrey.....I am sorry I jumped to conclusions.

You have a great blog BTW....I shall visit often!

Cheers

Lyn Anyone notice who seems to have dropped out of the conversation....

Pam that was my thoughts exactly...........You guys are awesome! Audrey,

So if it's not "spammin' scammin', what is it? If you are here in a scheme to promote your website in order to make money, then what is it? Stealing advertising? The reason you are here is to follow your husband's instructions. You target forums. We had another spammer scammer here named Jonathon and of course he was here for the long haul, he wasn't here because he was "selling", he was here for the information. Once he was stopped as a spammer scammer, he realized he had all the information he needed. His love and hugs left with him. If you are here to promote a website for the sake of making money, then I stand by my words, you are nasty. Because a few others that don't like me stand up for you shouldn't be taken to mean much, they would stand with the devil himself it it were against me. Bodak is here because he needs his ego stroked. Here is another part of your scheme and a caution to not get into a hurry to make money:

I have no problem with you earning money. See the advertisements to the left? If you want to build your for profit website or sell a product on this site, do it legally, not as some sneaky-snake thief. What about this? You just happened on us or are you following the money making strategy of your scheme? This is from your playbook:

Step 1: Where are we going to get the Traffic?

"I think we often jump into a promotion strategy and immediately think “link building”. While that is an essential part of it, you want to be able to really understand where your traffic is coming from. This is where you need to really understand your audience and where they are. If you simply focus on getting good rankings in Google then you are going to be missing a huge part of the bigger picture. So this is where we lay out where it is we want to get traffic from.

1 - Subscribers (repeat visitors)
2 - Search Engines (Mainly Google)
3 - Forums & Social Networks
4 - Word of Mouth / Recommendations "

Audrey you can say what you want about me, I'm not here to make money or pretend I love all these peole with fake love, hugs, hearts and kisses. I stand by what I said about you and the proof is here. Let me ask you this. I don't like people like you. You came here not for the reason that this forum is here, but instead to follow step three of your make money scheme. You and your husband make money because like P.T. Barnum said, "There's a sucker born every minute." That is the truth as sad as it is. "Give them trinkets and take their money".

LEV

levlarry2008-08-10 08:56:47

IGNORE!

Audrey; I've been noticing your post lately and thought to myself; I like her, she's going to fit in real good here. I still think that. Nothing I've read in this thread changes that. BUT to be honest I didn't read all of it just scanned some because it bored me.

So you have an RA blog. Good for you. You want folks to visit that blog. Who wouldn't? Frankly, not too many people are going to care to visit that often unless they too have RA and want to hear about that stuff. If you are like many of us here we don't know many people in"real life" with RA so we've sought out vitual friends at forums such as these.

I see that as wise and do not take offense to that. I also have no problem with you having a link to your blog in the signature line either. We are all free to click on it....or not if it bother's you. I'm also ok if you choose to sale something at this blog. There also; I'm free to choose to buy or not to buy.

Lev; put your detective skills to work and seek out some of these obvious fakes amoung us who have multiple screen names and go on the attack with some of our regulars for no reason other than their bored and plain out mean. Those are the ones I'd be interested in hearing the truth about.

It's recently been known that we do in fact have a moderator and if that moderator has a problem with anyone who has a signature line.....or even advertises then that moderator will in fact put a stop to it. Maybe you should just relax and let them worry about protecting us against things we shouldn't see.

Lovie2008-08-10 12:05:23Wow Lev. It is Sunday. I thought this was a day of rest. I bet you are very pleased with yourself that you managed to create 8 pages of chaos with the members of the site. It never ceases to amaze me that you can go to lengths to do what you do to people of this site. You are truly despicable. [QUOTE=lorster]Wow Lev. It is Sunday. I thought this was a day of rest. I bet you are very pleased with yourself that you managed to create 8 pages of chaos with the members of the site. It never ceases to amaze me that you can go to lengths to do what you do to people of this site. You are truly despicable. [/QUOTE]

It was only a couple pages of chaos and several pages of beer, wine and mead.LOL -

And true!

LOL...but I do think Lev deserves a bit of ribbing. Give him a beer. Maybe that is what he needs.

Larry is kind of creepy in his "search" for "truth"... If it wasn't in the virtual world, it would almost seem like stalking.... Maybe he does need a cold one.... Heh...

My father in law passed away last week and I haven't totally been aware of all the bull that has been going on. I posted right after he died and Audrey was the first to reply, no shout outs for her blog, no hidden agenda just compassion, which I desperatly needed, especially from one mother to another. Audrey thank you for your kind words, I greatly appreciated everyone of them.

Regan

Yes- I too remember kind words from Audrey for posts I've made. To be fair- levlarry had kind words for me too.....

I get very uncomfortable in these situations....

If nothing else.. levlarry has caused many of us to verbalize what we felt about Audrey. She's sweet.. she suffers as we do.. she's compassionate.. and understanding... she should put her link back in her siggie.

I had been to her blog before lev's posting..

It's good reading... I enjoyed it.. I will do so again.

As was said.. we're free to chose to visit the site and/or click on links..

I don't think we need the thought police ... thanks anyway, lev.